B&NES Council should offer free parking across the whole district in the run up to Christmas to help boost the local economy, Conservative councillors say.

It comes just a few weeks after the council announced that free parking at council-owned car parks would be available in Keynsham on every Saturday in December.

The Conservative opposition on Bath and North East Somerset Council welcomes this decision and is today calling on the Liberal Democrat to extend the offer of free parking on every Saturday in December to all council-owned car parks in B&NES.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on B&NES Council, said: “We are today calling on the administration to extend the offer of free parking to all council-owned car parks in B&NES to give local businesses a much-needed economic boost in the run up to Christmas.

“In 2019, our world-famous Bath Christmas Market brought more than £30m to the local economy. With the Liberal Democrat administration taking the decision to cancel this year’s Christmas market, there is an even greater need to do all we can to ensure businesses are given the space to thrive.

“We welcome the decision to bring free parking to Keynsham and believe that residents and businesses across the whole of B&NES should receive this early Christmas present as well.”

The Liberal Democrat administration must learn from the mistakes of others if they are to bring Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods to B&NES, opposition councillors say.

It follows Ealing Council’s decision last month to remove seven of the Low-Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) schemes it had previously put in place.

LTNs are designed to block access to residential streets in order to improve air quality and reduce congestion. 

The Lib Dems who run Bath and North East Somerset Council are planning to rollout Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods across the district over the course of the next couple of years, and the Conservative opposition on the council is urging them to learn from Ealing’s mistakes and think again.

The LTNs in Ealing were erected during the lockdown last year. But recent a consultation found the majority of people living in them were against the schemes.

In Ealing, the LTNs were found to have increased levels of congestion on nearby streets, made no improvement to air quality and soured community relations.

A report considered by Ealing Council’s Cabinet reads: “There is evidence that (as would be expected) traffic flows have reduced within each of the LTN areas themselves. 

“Apart from that, broadly speaking, the overall benefits for some residents are somewhat offset by disbenefits to others.

“In addition, there are no schemes where the overall impact in terms of traffic/congestion and air quality are significant either positively or negatively.”

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on B&NES Council, said: “Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods are nice in theory but don’t always work in practice. As we now know from what has happened in Ealing, they can create more problems than they solve.

“By pushing traffic onto other roads and damaging relations between communities, LTNs will serve only to create ‘poor air zones’ and ‘rich air zones’.

“We are therefore urging the Lib Dem ‘listening’ council to put its money where its mouth is and actually listen to residents in Ealing who objected so forcefully to LTNs.

“And with a budget of £2.2m already earmarked for LTNs in B&NES, we must ask ourselves – is this money well spent?”

The Leader of Bath and North East Somerset Council must give a full and frank explanation as to why this year’s Bath Christmas Market has been cancelled, Conservatives say.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on B&NES Council, has written an open letter to Cllr Kevin Guy, the Liberal Democrat Leader of the Council, on behalf of residents and businesses in Bath demanding to know why the 2021 Bath Christmas Market has been cancelled.

On Friday 17 September, the administration announced that the Christmas Market was to be “reshaped” due to supply problems caused by Brexit and COVID-19. This reshaping involved, among other things, moving the market online.

But the explanations given by the administration for the cancellation – Brexit and COVID-19 – have been challenged by councillors, residents and businesses who have pointed out their numerous flaws.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on B&NES Council, said: “I am shocked and saddened, though not entirely surprised, that the incompetence of this administration has resulted in the loss of our Christmas Market.

“The decision to cancel the event is a devastating blow to the local economy at a time when this Council should be doing all it can to support local businesses.

“I have written to Cllr Guy to demand a full explanation because the excuses given so far simply do not add up. Time after time we are seeing a catalogue of failure from this administration, and the Leader of the Council ought to recognise that he has a duty to be transparent when making crucial decisions.”

The news came just a few months after Cllr Guy announced that the 2021 event was to be extended for an extra week, meaning it would run for an unprecedented 25 days. The decision to cancel the event so soon after announcing its extension, Cllr Pritchard claims, shows a catastrophic lack of forethought and planning.

In his letter to Cllr Guy, Cllr Pritchard says: “According to Visit England, there are almost 20 locations in the UK that are hosting Christmas markets this year. This even includes small towns such as Skipton and Rochester. Bath is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its Christmas market is famed across Europe. It seems highly unlikely, therefore, that Bath is uniquely susceptible to problems with logistics, while other towns and cities are able to continue as planned with their festive markets.”

The Bath Christmas Market attracts around 400,000 visitors every year and is consistently named one of the best festive markets in Europe.

The Conservative Group on Bath and North East Somerset Council has appealed to the Government for help to fight the Bath Ring of Steel proposals.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Council’s Conservative Group and ward member for the Chew Valley, has penned an open letter to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps MP asking the Secretary of State to review the policy.

It follows the recent Cabinet meeting in which the Council’s Liberal Democrat administration approved the plans to restrict access to Bath city centre, and the Conservative Group’s persistent opposition to them.

In the letter, Cllr Pritchard highlighted the fact that the proposals are, in reality, insufficient to stop a terror attack and would instead leave people, especially people with mobility problems, locked out of the city centre.

He explained that the policy is against the spirit of the Equalities Act and that, following the economic shock that has been visited upon towns and cities across the country as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we should be championing our city centres, not walling them off to residents and visitors.

Cllr Pritchard said: “The Ring of Steel proposals are unfair and unnecessary and we are seeking help from the Government to try to get this administration to see sense and ditch these controversial plans.

“The Liberal Democrats are using the threat of terrorism to further their anti-motoring agenda and further demonise drivers. These proposals will not actually prevent terror attacks from taking place and will simply marginalise members of our community who are not able to move around easily.”

Councillors in Keynsham have called on Bath and North East Somerset Council to build a roundabout at a busy junction.

Cllr Alan Hale and Cllr Lisa O’Brien, both Conservative councillors for Keynsham South on B&NES Council, are urging the authority to build a roundabout at the junction between Longmeadow Road and Charlton Road.

This, the councillors say, will make it easier and safer for traffic emerging onto busy Charlton Road from Longmeadow Road, as well as reducing queuing traffic on Longmeadow Road.

Cllr Alan Hale, who is also the Council’s Member Advocate for Safer Roads, said: “A roundabout at this location would go a long way to improving road safety in the area and will make things easier for residents who live in the vicinity.

“Speeds on Charlton Road can be quite high and this makes it difficult and unsafe for drivers emerging from Longmeadow Road.”

Cllr Lisa O’Brien said: “Today we are urging the Council to take these safety concerns seriously and start to undertake the necessary procedures for making changes to the road layout. “A roundabout here is a sensible and necessary measure and Cllr Hale and I would be willing to revisit the plans with officers and the relevant cabinet member as soon as possible to get the ball rolling.”

The safety of women and girls across Bath and North East Somerset has been recognised as a top priority for the Council.

A special motion was tabled at last night’s Council meeting calling on the authority to act to improve the safety of women and girls right across B&NES.

The motion, proposed by Liberal Democrat councillor Dine Romero and seconded by Labour councillor Liz Hardman, was written with full cross-party support, with the Council’s Conservative, Independent and Green Party political groups also giving it their backing.

Following the killing of Sarah Everard in March this year, the issue of behaviour towards women and girls, and their safety in public places, has been brought to the forefront.

The motion recognises that everybody should have the right to be safe from violence and harassment on our streets and states that women and girls from any background should not have to alter their behaviour in order to feel safe.

It is also acknowledged that it is not just women who are at risk but that any individual may be vulnerable to attack for various reasons.

Councillor Dine Romero, Liberal Democrat ward member for Southdown, said: “This motion represents a cross-party statement of solidarity with women. We are not only taking a stand against violence and harassment, but we are also calling for concrete action to help all women go about our ordinary lives without fear. We want this Council to do its part, and to make sure in all its decisions that it is not putting more risk on women.

“Somehow it has become accepted that it is women’s fault if they become victims. This is not right and must stop. Women should be safe in public spaces, whatever time of day or night, during daylight or in the dark. Going forward this principle will be embedded in Council strategies and councillors will work together to make B&NES a safer place.”

Cllr Liz Hardman, Labour ward councillor for Paulton, said: “Women are far more likely than men to fall victim to sexual violence, with estimates that 4.9 million women have been victims of sexual assault in their lives including 1.4 million who have been raped or have faced attempted rape.

“The vast majority of sexual offences remain unsolved. Indeed, most are not even reported to the police. Women feel too embarrassed to report rape because they think that the police will not help, and they think that they will not be believed. 

“Women live in fear and they change their behaviour to avoid being out at night on their own and to try to keep safe. Yet Sarah Everard did everything she could to stay safe and still she fell victim to violence. As a society we must stop laying all the responsibility for keeping safe on women. There are things that B&NES Council can and should do. We should make our public spaces safer with improved lighting and CCTV provision and we must keep monitoring progress”.

Cllr Sally Davis, Conservative ward councillor for Clutton and Farmborough, said: “I am pleased to see this motion brought to Council, though I would of course prefer to live in a world in which it would not be deemed necessary.

“The fight for equal rights and fairness for women has a long and proud history. Yet despite many successes there is still, evidently, a lot of work to be done to ensure women and girls, and other more vulnerable members of our society, feel safe in public places.

“On behalf of the Conservative Group, I applaud this motion and the spirit of cross-party unity in which it was written.”

Cllr Karen Walker, Independent Group ward councillor for Peasedown, said: “The cross-party group of women came together to share their own experiences and to help understand the need to support others. Woman should not have to change the way they are to stop sexual harassment in any shape or form.

“B&NES Council and other organisations should work together to provide better street lightning and CCTV cameras. We shall continue to monitor any actions and push if we feel that safety measures are taking too long to be addressed, as stated in the motion before Council.”

Cllr Joanna Wright, Green Party ward councillor for Lambridge, said: “The Green Party supports this motion, as we recognise the level of violence that surrounds many in daily life is not acceptable.

“All sections of society need to call out violence against women and against any human being whatever their gender. We have to keep asking the question, what kind of world do we want to live in, how do we make sure it is fair and safe for everyone to go about their daily lives? This motion is an opportunity for all of us to call out violence, harassment and intimidation.”

The motion requests the principle of championing the right of women and girls to be protected from violence and harassment in public places be embedded in all Council strategies going forward.

It supports schemes such as ‘Ask Angela’ and calls on licensed businesses to participate and to take active steps to ensure harassment and sexual intimidation is taken seriously.

It also calls on Council departments, and other public bodies, to improve the security of public spaces and asks that schools, colleges, universities and youth organisations renew their efforts to promote a ‘safety and respect for all’ agenda among their students.

Motorists will be permanently excluded from Bath city centre following a “reckless” decision by B&NES Cabinet members.

At tonight’s Cabinet meeting members agreed to go ahead with proposals to completely restrict access to Bath city centre through the controversial ‘Ring of Steel’ proposals.

With approval from Cabinet, the process can now start whereby access to the city centre will be restricted 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week for 365 days-a-year. New reinforced bollards and anti-terror street furniture will also be erected at numerous places in the city centre.

These unnecessary measures will leave city centre residents unable to park their cars outside their properties, receive deliveries to their doors or be dropped off at their doorsteps by taxis late at night.

Some of the more controversial proposals have been tweaked to allow a degree of access for Blue Badge holders. But these changes, the B&NES Conservative Group says, do not go far enough and will severely restrict the freedoms of residents.

Cllr Karen Warrington, Conservative councillor for the Chew Valley on Bath and North East Somerset Council, said: “The people of Bath will wake up tomorrow morning in a city they no longer recognise. When these regulations come into force, this administration will have turned a once welcoming and vibrant city centre into a no-go zone for residents.

“The concessions the administration has made to Blue Badge holders do not go far enough and they have given themselves the power to remove these concessions whenever they see fit.

“Let me be clear – the Liberal Democrats are using the threat of terrorism to further their anti-motoring agenda. This is reckless, cynical and underhand in the extreme.”

The decision to refuse a planning application for an 18m-high mast in Midsomer Norton has been welcomed by a local councillor.

Cllr Chris Watt, Conservative ward member for Midsomer Norton Redfield on B&NES Council, objected to the planning application when it was submitted to planning officers.

The application would have seen the telecommunications mast sited near the grade 11* listed St John’s Church, a prominent location in the Midsomer Norton Conservation Area.  

Although Cllr Watt supported the aspiration of improving telecommunications services in the ward, he did not think the conservation area was an appropriate location for the mast. The installation would have included the mast itself and equipment cabinets on a raised pavement highly visible to motorists and pedestrians.

In a welcome move, Bath and North East Somerset Council earlier this month announced that the application had been refused by planning officers.

The proposal, they said, would be “highly incongruous, harmful to visual amenity and entirely at odds with the historic character of the street scene”.

They added that it would undermine the character of the conservation area and the setting of the nearby listed buildings, especially as the proposed equipment had not been sympathetically designed or camouflaged.

Responding to the decision, Cllr Watt said: “I’m delighted that the Council’s planning officers have refused this application. The mast would undoubtedly have been at odds with the character of the surrounding area and local people would have found it an unnecessary imposition.

“I’m pleased that my objections, and those of other Midsomer Norton residents, have been listened to. The public benefits of the proposal are acknowledged but so too are the public benefits of the conservation area, and as a ward councillor I will continue to stand up for the things that matter most to residents in Midsomer Norton.”

Cllr Watt’s objections to the application were shared by independent Midsomer Norton councillor Paul Myers, who also welcomed the decision.

Cllr Myers said: “Given that the Midsomer Norton and Welton Conservation Area is only one of two at risk in B&NES, it’s great to see that concerns about the impact of this particular proposed mast on the street scene have been listened to by planners.

“This development would never have been allowed in a street in Bath, so I see this as a watershed moment where at last Midsomer Norton’s heritage counts too.” 

Conservative councillors have called for a memorial to be constructed in honour of those in Bath and North East Somerset who have lost their lives due to COVID-19.

The B&NES Conservative Group has tabled a motion for debate at next week’s Council meeting.

The motion seeks to recognise those people who have lost their lives due to COVID and pays tribute to all the key workers and health staff who have done so much for the community during the pandemic.

Other authorities across the country have been using blossom trees as a way to pay tribute to victims of COVID.

If the motion is agreed by Council next week, the Leader of the Council, Cllr Kevin Guy, will be required to create a cross-party working group to find a way for a blossom tree memorial, or other suitable memorial, to be created at an appropriate location in B&NES.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the B&NES Conservative Group, said: “We are tabling this motion because we wish to honour those people in our local area who have lost their lives as a result of COVID-19.

“The pandemic has been a challenging time for all of us but for some people, it has been devastating. We wish to extend a hand to those who have lost loved ones and to find a way for our community to heal.

“We think a memorial at a suitable location in B&NES would be a fitting way to honour the victims of COVID and to thank all they key workers and health staff who have looked after us over the past year.”

At the time of writing, 293 people in Bath and North East Somerset have died of COVID-19.

Councillors and activists have come together to oppose plans to build a new food waste processing plant on green belt land near Keynsham.

Cllr Alan Hale and Cllr Lisa O’Brien, Bath and North East Somerset Council’s Conservative ward councillors for Keynsham South, have teamed up with local activist group POKE (Protect our Keynsham Environment) to help see off the controversial proposals.

The plans involve building an Anaerobic Digester Plant at the former Queen Charlton Quarry, Charlton Field Lane.

The Anaerobic Digestion facility processes organic materials or ‘feedstocks’ (crops and food waste) to produce biogas to create renewable energy. If approved, the plant will process 92,000 tonnes of crops and food waste a year.

Objections to the proposals include the detrimental effects the plant will have on the local community through an increase in HGV traffic, noise and odour pollution. The application also poses a threat the green belt.

Cllr Alan Hale said: “I applaud the desire to create more renewable energy but I do not believe it should come at the expense of the local community in Keynsham and in nearby wards. This is green belt land that should be protected from this sort of development.

“I’m delighted to team up with POKE on this issue as it shows that ward councillors and residents are united in their objections to these plans.”

Cllr Lisa O’Brien said: “POKE have done excellent work to raise awareness of these potentially damaging proposals locally, and it’s a pleasure to work with them going forward.

“This is not the right location for a building of this nature and I implore the Council to think of local residents and make the right decision when, eventually, a decision is to be made.”

Kerry Morgan, Chair of Protect Our Keynsham Environment (POKE), said: “We’ve looked in detail at the plans for where the waste to feed this giant digester will travel from and we do not believe this will reduce our carbon footprint. Instead, we will be blighted by more lorries on our roads and higher levels of noise and odour pollution.

“We all want sustainable and renewable energy, but this controversial plan isn’t the answer. These plans will change our area forever and we need to stand firm against them.”

The application will be brought before the Council’s Planning Committee in due course.

Failures with waste services across Bath and North East Somerset show the Liberal Democrats are ‘staggeringly inept’, opposition councillors say.

The Conservative Group on B&NES Council is urging the ruling Lib Dems to get their act together and address the problems currently blighting waste services.

It comes after recent revelations that over the past 12 months the administration has not had a single successful prosecution for fly-tipping, despite recording more than 3,000 separate incidents.

Other local authorities across the country have had recent successes with prosecuting fly-tippers. In April this year, East Herts Council prosecuted four people for fly-tipping, Hull City Council prosecuted nine and Durham County Council prosecuted two.

The Conservative Group insists that it is not good enough that B&NES has not managed to get a single prosecution in the past 12 months, and is concerned that not enough is being done to tackle fly-tipping.

It also follows weeks of severe delays to the kerbside collection service. On Wednesday (30 June), the Council failed to collect waste from more than 180 individual locations and from more than 150 on Thursday (1 July).

Although the administration has blamed the delays on a nationwide shortage of drivers, other authorities in the South West are coping just fine. This, the Conservative Group says, points towards mismanagement of the service by the Liberal Democrats as being the main cause of the delays.

It was also revealed last month that the amount of waste – from kerbside collections, HWRC deposits and trade waste – the Council sends for incineration has increased by 28% since 2018/19. Incineration is a controversial method of disposing of waste due to its negative effects on the environment.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on Bath and North East Somerset Council, said: “This catalogue of failure when it comes to issues around waste and the environment is simply not good enough. It shows a staggering degree of ineptitude on behalf of the Lib Dem administration, and I am hereby serving them with a notice that they must make improvements as quickly as possible.

“These services are extremely important to residents and the Council needs to recognise that it has a vital role to play in discouraging behaviours that damage the environment.

“From today, the Conservative Group wants to see the administration make more of an effort to prosecute fly-tippers, incinerate less waste and ensure the kerbside collection service is able to return to full capacity as soon as possible.”

The B&NES Liberal Democrats’ inept traffic policies show they are asleep at the wheel, Conservative councillors say.

It follows last night’s (23 June) Cabinet meeting in which the Lib Dem administration approved the roll-out of a number of Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) across Bath and North East Somerset.

LTNs are a key part of the Lib Dem administration’s Liveable Neighbourhoods policy, the aim of which, they say, is to reduce overall traffic levels and to discourage what they call “unnecessary car ownership”.

But the B&NES Conservative councillors say the measures will lead to higher levels of congestion and pollution and will result in residents with mobility problems being disproportionately affected.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on Bath and North East Somerset Council, said: “We are disappointed, though not surprised, to see Cabinet give the green light for 28 Low-Traffic Neighbourhood schemes to be rolled out across the district.

“We sympathise with the principle of LTNs, and with the administration’s desire to reduce overall traffic levels in the area. But we know from the introduction of LTN schemes in other parts of the country that, due to the displacement of traffic, they can lead to higher levels of pollution and congestion and can hamper emergency service vehicles.

“We have urged the administration to keep in mind all the people who could be adversely affected by these schemes and to rethink their approach. Sadly, they haven’t listened, proving that when it comes to their transport policies, they are well and truly asleep at the wheel.”

At a recent meeting of the Council’s Climate Emergency Scrutiny Panel, it was revealed that LTNs in Bath will not be scrapped even if they are initially disastrous.

As well as the approval of 28 LTN schemes by Cabinet last night, the administration is also seeking to base residents’ parking permit charges on vehicle emissions, increase the cost of on-street parking and implement on-street charges on Sundays.

The Conservative Group is concerned that proposals to introduce residents’ permit charges based solely on vehicle emissions will see those unable to afford to upgrade their cars to more environmentally-friendly models hit hardest.

The Conservatives are also concerned that proposals to start charging people to park on Sundays will hamper Bath’s economic recovery post-COVID.

And with the closure of Cleveland Bridge scheduled to take place for three months from Monday 28 June, there is a very real prospect of traffic chaos in Bath.

The current backlog in waste and recycling collections across Bath and North East Somerset must be dealt with swiftly, Conservative councillors say.

It follows news released today (23 June) that the service is currently hampered by delays due to a shortage of staff.

In response, the Conservative Group on B&NES Council has called on the Liberal Democrat administration to ensure the backlog in kerbside collections is dealt with quickly and that proper procedures are put in place to mitigate the effects of staff shortages.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on B&NES Council, said: “I am disappointed to hear of the long delays to the waste and recycling collection service across Bath and North East Somerset.

“This service is an extremely important one to residents and the Council should be making every effort to ensure the backlog of collections is cleared as soon as possible.

“While it’s true that waste services across the country have been hit by a national shortage of drivers, neighbouring Councils seem to be coping much better. It’s vital that the Lib Dem administration urgently puts procedures in place to mitigate the effects of staff shortages, and to ensure the service is able to resume at full capacity as soon as possible.”

Although the administration has blamed the delays on a nationwide shortage of drivers, B&NES Council is, at the time of writing, the only authority in the South West currently advertising for drivers for the waste and recycling services – suggesting other authorities are coping just fine.

This, the Conservative Group says, points towards mismanagement of the service by the Liberal Democrats as being the predominant cause of the delays.

The B&NES Liberal Democrats must rethink their plans for Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods, Conservative councillors say.

It comes ahead of a crunch Cabinet meeting next week (23 June) in which proposals to introduce Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) will be taken forward.

LTNs are a key part of the Lib Dem administration’s Liveable Neighbourhoods policy. The aim, they say, is to reduce overall traffic on the roads of Bath and North East Somerset.

But Conservative councillors say the measures will lead to higher levels of congestion and pollution and will result in residents with mobility problems being disproportionally affected.

Cllr Vic Pritchard, Leader of the Conservative Group on Bath and North East Somerset Council, said: “Next week’s Cabinet meeting will be crucial as we will finally learn which schemes the administration intends to take forward as Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods.

“Although we sympathise with the principle of LTNs, we are concerned that problems that have been reported with them in other parts of the country will also emerge here. These include higher levels of pollution and congestion caused by displaced traffic, unfair restrictions on peoples’ freedom of movement and delays to emergency service vehicles.

“Residents and businesses across the district have serious concerns about the consequences of these schemes, and the Conservative Group is calling on the Lib Dem Cabinet to heed these concerns and rethink what could be extremely harmful policies.”

At a meeting of the Council’s Climate Emergency Scrutiny Panel last week, it was revealed that LTNs in Bath will not be scrapped even if they are initially disastrous.

In September 2020 in the London borough of Ealing, a protest against LTNs was attended by around 2,500 people, with more than 10,000 people having signed a petition objecting to them.

In October, Harrow Council introduced four LTNs. Six months later, they were all removed on account of causing higher levels of congestion and pollution and delaying emergency service vehicles.

Following calls by the B&NES Conservatives for a rethink, the administration last month agreed to pause their plans to restrict access to Bath city centre.

The Conservative Group hopes the administration will heed its warning over Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods and once again puts the brake on the policy.

Cabinet will meet to discuss the proposals at 6.30pm on Wednesday 23 June.

Cllr Vic Pritchard was last night unanimously elected Leader of the B&NES Conservative Group.

It follows the resignation last month of Cllr Paul Myers, who held the position for the past two years.

At last night’s extraordinary meeting, Cllr Pritchard received the Group’s full support, with members unanimously voting in favour of his nomination for Leader.

Cllr Pritchard is ward member for the Chew Valley and has been a councillor for the past 34 years.

When the Conservative Group was last in control of B&NES Council, Cllr Pritchard served as Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, and he currently chairs the Council’s Children, Adults, Health and Wellbeing Policy Development and Scrutiny Panel.

Cllr Pritchard said: “It’s a great honour to be named Leader of the B&NES Conservative Group and I thank my colleagues for giving me their full support.

“So far this year we have successfully forced the Liberal Democrat Administration to rethink a number of their policies – namely, to charge people to recycle rubbish at the tip, to completely restrict access to Bath city centre, and to introduce controversial Active Travel schemes on which proper public consultation had not taken place.

“Under my leadership we will continue to be a strong Opposition, holding the Administration to account and ensuring the pursuit of their policies does not come at the expense of residents and businesses in Bath and North East Somerset.”

As well as naming the new Leader, the Conservative Group last night elected a new Deputy Leader, with Cllr Karen Warrington, also ward member for the Chew Valley, receiving the full support of the Group.

She said: “I am delighted to have been entrusted with supporting the Leader in the deputy leadership role.

“Residents and businesses in B&NES need a strong Opposition on the Council, and we will continue to speak up for people who stand to be hit hard by Liberal Democrat policies that have not properly been thought through.”

Cllr Warrington has served on the Council for the past six years and has previously held the post of Cabinet Member for Transformation. She currently sits on the Council’s Corporate Policy Development Scrutiny Panel and Employee Committee Panel.

Extra cash to allow cultural programmes to take place in Keynsham and Midsomer Norton will boost the local economy and raise community spirits, councillors say.

It was announced last week that Keynsham and Midsomer Norton are among 60 high streets in England to receive a share of £6 million from Historic England’s High Streets Heritage Action Zones’ Cultural Programme.

Keynsham and Midsomer Norton have been awarded £165,000 to allow them to host new community programmes centred around the high streets that are focused on the arts, history and culture.

Local Conservative ward councillors have expressed their delight at the news and have spoken about how the funding will benefit their communities.

Cllr Brian Simmons, B&NES Conservative councillor for Keynsham North, said: “I’m thrilled to see this funding coming to Keynsham and I’m hugely excited about what it can do for the local community. Keynsham has a rich and fascinating history, of which local residents and businesses alike are extremely proud.

“This funding will give us the chance to showcase everything we have to offer and will bring a much-needed boost to the local economy after an extremely challenging 12 months. It will also help to foster a sense of community spirit and bring people together again after months of isolation.”

Cllr Chris Watt, B&NES Conservative councillor for Midsomer Norton Redfield, said: “This funding is extremely welcome and will go a long way towards improving the local cultural offer for everybody who lives and works here.

“Midsomer Norton is home to numerous cultural traditions such as Wassailing and other historic market activities, and it’s hugely important that we keep these traditions alive for as long as possible.

“I’m sure I can speak for everybody in Midsomer Norton when I say a big ‘thank you’ to Historic England for including us in this pot of funding.”

Keynsham has been awarded £80,000 to fund activities including mini festivals, markets, cultural community days and the installation of an illustrative timeline of Keynsham’s history. In Midsomer Norton, the ‘Merriment in Midsomer Norton’ Cultural Programme was awarded £85,000 to relaunch historic street markets, enhance existing festivals like Wassailing and delivering interactive heritage and cultural events.

Taking place over the next three years, these Local Cultural Programmes will be led by a ‘Cultural Consortia’ formed of local stakeholder groups and representatives, with support from Bath & North East Somerset Council and Historic England.

Draconian plans to build a ‘ring of steel’ around Bath city centre must be scrapped immediately, Conservative councillors have said.

It follows the publication last week of an independent access report and the findings of a public consultation, both of which clearly show how damaging the proposed measures will be to residents and businesses in Bath.

The proposals involve restricting access to the city centre 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week for 365 days-a-year. They also involve erecting new reinforced bollards and anti-terror street furniture at numerous places in the city centre.

These unnecessary measures will leave city centre residents unable to park their cars outside their properties, receive deliveries to their doors or be dropped off at their doorsteps by taxis late at night.

The restrictions will also result in Blue Badge holders having to park in Council car parks rather than outside their homes.

The independent access report, published this week, questions the “reasonableness of excluding vehicles used for the purposes of enabling access” and states that the increased distance from points of arrival to destinations would result in some people “having to endure pain for longer and at higher levels”.

The report also makes it clear that using barriers and hurdles to prevent people from gaining access to city centre locations can significantly affect peoples’ wellbeing, and that increasing the distances between points of arrival to destinations will lead to people with toilet access-related needs not risking a journey.

Of the 522 people who responded to the consultation, around 60% were against the proposals.

One respondent, who is currently shielding, explained the negative psychological implications of not being able to access the city centre after having had to live in isolation for so long due to COVID-19.

Another said: “The purpose of a Blue Badge is that it allows 2.5 million people to maintain their independence. The proposals do not promote independent living. These proposals remove independence from disabled people.”

As a result of these findings, the Conservatives on Bath and North East Somerset Council are urging the Liberal Democrat Administration to scrap the plans immediately and apologise to residents and businesses for the anxiety they have caused.

Cllr Karen Warrington, Conservative councillor on Bath and North East Somerset Council, said: “We’ve been warning the Liberal Democrat Administration of the problems with these draconian plans for Bath city centre since they were first tabled.

“It’s now crystal clear just how much people will suffer if these measures go ahead, simply to appease the Lib Dems’ anti-motoring impulses. “We are therefore calling on the Administration to withdraw these plans immediately and apologise to the people of Bath for tabling, at great cost to the taxpayer, such ill-thought out proposals in the first place.”

Cllr Paul Myers has today stood down as Leader of the Conservative Group on Bath and North East Somerset Council, having led the Group for the past two years.

During that time, Cllr Myers has worked tirelessly to ensure the Conservatives have been able to act as a strong Opposition, holding the Liberal Democrat Administration to account on key decisions and scrutinising policy in forensic detail.

As well as standing down from the leadership, the Midsomer Norton ward councillor has also resigned the Conservative whip and will sit as an independent councillor (though not part of the Independent Group) until the next elections in 2023, when he plans to stand down as a councillor.

Cllr Myers has taken the decision to step back from frontline politics in order to be able to spend more time with his family after what has been a challenging couple of years for him personally.

In a statement, Cllr Myers said: “I came into local politics in 2011 not just to represent the residents of Midsomer Norton Redfield but to get things done to make a real difference.

“I’ve given it my all since 2011 and will now, by standing aside from B&NES wider politics, focus on working on a few remaining projects in Midsomer Norton such as the Town Hall with fellow ward councillor Chis Watt. Above all I look forward to having more of a personal home life”.

Cllr Vic Pritchard has become the Group’s Acting Leader until members can vote for Cllr Myers’ replacement in the next few weeks.

Cllr Pritchard said: “On behalf of all members of the Conservative Group, I would like to say an enormous thank you to Paul for everything he has done for us over the past two years.

“He has demonstrated exemplary leadership, successfully managed a consistently high workload and conducted himself throughout with an erudite political wit. For these reasons, and many more, he will be greatly missed.

“We wish him every success in his future endeavours, and I have every faith that he will continue to be an outstanding ward councillor for Midsomer Norton.”

Support for the new Leader of Bath and North East Somerset Council has been withheld by Opposition councillors.

At Tuesday’s Council AGM, members elected Cllr Kevin Guy as the new leader following the surprise resignation last month of Cllr Dine Romero, who had held the position since May 2019.

The Conservative Group voted to abstain on Cllr Guy’s nomination, feeling they could not support it due to the controversial nature of a number of the Administration’s policies.

The Conservative Group on the Council fears the change in leadership will not signal a change of approach from the Administration, with policies potentially disastrous to residents and businesses in the region still likely to be pursued.

Speaking after the vote, Cllr Paul Myers, Leader of the Conservative Group on Bath and North East Somerset Council, said: “We could not, in all consciousness, vote to approve the nomination of the new leader because we fundamentally disagree with this Administration’s plans for B&NES.

“Their decision to prioritise dealing with environmental issues in glorious isolation even to post-pandemic economic recovery; to pursue the policy of restricting access to Bath City Centre; to continue to roll-out Low Traffic Neighbourhoods; and to fail to consult properly on Active Travel Schemes are serious misjudgements which show how hopelessly out of touch they are with the needs of residents.

“Given this Administration’s clear disregard for residents and businesses, there is every reason to believe that Cllr Kevin Guy and his Cabinet will continue to sacrifice the local economy and jobs in order to win the badge as the country’s premier Climate Emergency zealots.”

Plans to build a new food waste processing plant on green belt land near Keynsham will severely harm the local community, Conservative councillors say.

Two Conservative councillors on Bath and North East Somerset Council have voiced their opposition to plans to build an Anaerobic Digester Plant at the former Queen Charlton Quarry, Charlton Field Lane.

The Anaerobic Digestion facility processes organic materials or ‘feedstocks’ (crops and food waste) to produce biogas to create renewable energy. If approved, the plant will process 92,000 tonnes of crops and food waste a year.

But two members of the B&NES Conservative Group – Cllr Alan Hale, ward member for Keynsham South and Cllr Paul May, ward member for Publow and Whitchurch, have objected to the plans, citing the detrimental effects the plant will have on the local community.

The objections centre around an increase in HGV traffic, noise and smell pollution and the fact that the application threatens the green belt.

Cllr Alan Hale said: “While we welcome the drive towards producing renewable energy, we do not believe it should come at the detriment of the local community in Keynsham and in nearby wards.

“If the Anaerobic Digestor is built, HGV traffic going to and from the plant would have to come along Woollard Lane and into Charlton Road. Anyone who is familiar with Woollard Lane will know that it’s in no way suitable for a constant flow of HGVs, especially if they are meeting each other at narrow sections of the road.

“In so doing, they could seriously damage the quality of life, and physical and mental health, of people who live nearby. Road safety would also become a major issue, with increased levels of HGV traffic in an area where people regularly walk and ride horses.”

Cllr Paul May said: “This green belt development will mean that residents who live nearby will be directly affected by noise and smell pollution, and an increase in HGV traffic.

“Hundreds of new homes have been built less than a mile from the proposed development site and it’s deeply unfair that the occupants should have to live with this plant on their doorsteps.

“There are more appropriate locations for a development of this nature, ones that will not impact the green belt and local communities in the same way. As local Conservative councillors, we are standing up for our residents and calling for this application to be refused.”

The current application will be brought before the Council’s Planning Committee in due course.